A series of experiments was carried out on verbal short-term memory for lists of words. In the first experiment, participants were tested via immediate serial recall and word frequency and list set size were manipulated. With closed lists the same set of items was repeatedly sampled, with open lists no item was presented more than once. In serial recall, effects of word frequency and set size were found. When a serial reconstruction of order task was used, in a second experiment, robust effects of word frequency emerged but set size failed to show an effect. The effect of word frequency in order reconstruction were further examined in two final experiments. The data from these experiments revealed that the effects of word frequency are robust and are apparently not exclusively indicative of output processes. A multiple mechanisms account is adopted in which word frequency can influence both retrieval and pre-retrieval processes.
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